The radiant full moon hung suspended in the night sky, its soft, ethereal glow captivating the soul.

"Friend," Xilaine stepped forward slightly, testing the air, "we harbor no ill will..."

"Even if we did harbor ill will," Zhong Shenxiu stated flatly, still refusing to glance at Xilaine, "you'd first need to assess whether you possess the strength for it!"

Ga~~

Xilaine was completely silenced, sputtering for a good while before managing to speak again, "Friend, we've journeyed a long way to reach this spot; as they say, at home you rely on brothers, abroad you rely on friends! We haven't eaten properly in days, so perhaps you could..."

"Looking to freeload a meal, are we?" Zhong Shenxiu cut him off without mercy.

Ga~~

Xilaine was choked into silence once more, a flush rising up his neck. To think that he, the renowned leader of a mercenary band, was left utterly speechless by a mere child—he truly began to doubt his own command.

In truth, Zhong Shenxiu was not wrong; he was hoping for a free meal, but having it put so bluntly was hardly graceful! The most stinging part was that these words came from a child. Xilaine couldn't even muster the indignation he felt he deserved!

Just as Xilaine was caught between advancing and retreating, Zhong Shenxiu’s infuriatingly calm voice cut through the tension: "Fixed price: one gold coin per sweet potato!"

Blackmail. This was naked, open-faced extortion!

But the aroma was simply too intoxicating! Perhaps this was the only chance they would ever get; money was external, something that could be earned again, but missing this opportunity meant never again savoring such a magnificent scent. Still, one potato for a whole gold coin—wasn't that too steep?

Under the dual pressures of hunger and temptation, some among the group began to waver.

"Three for me," came Lisha’s quiet voice abruptly.

Women, indeed, showed the lowest resistance in matters of fine food.

All eyes snapped to Lisha, but she acted as if unseen, walking directly up to Zhong Shenxiu and Robin.

"Here are three gold coins; three for me," Lisha said, pointing toward the sweet potato Robin was currently devouring.

Receiving a subtle nod from Zhong Shenxiu, Robin quickly took the money from Lisha's hand and passed her three still-warm sweet potatoes.

"How do I eat this?" Lisha asked, already impatient.

"Peel the skin, eat the inside!" Zhong Shenxiu stated, offering only those four words before returning to ignore Lisha.

Lisha said no more, carefully placing two of the sweet potatoes into the magic ring she wore before beginning to savor the delicacy with focused attention.

The members of the mercenary squad watched Lisha intently. They had first seen her appear quite ladylike, only to transform into someone gorging herself with the eagerness of a wolf. A small shock rippled through them, but more potent was the surge of desire for the food itself!

"Vice-Captain, how does the one you’re eating taste?" Payne asked, almost drooling.

"Want to know?"

Payne instinctively nodded.

"Buy your own." Lisha finished, quickly backing away as if the presence of this man might somehow taint her appetite.

What Lisha failed to notice was the sudden, sharp gleam in Zhong Shenxiu’s eyes the moment she slipped those two potatoes into her magic ring.

"Robin, is that a storage ring on that woman’s hand?" Zhong Shenxiu transmitted telepathically to Robin.

Robin glanced at Lisha’s hand. "It looks like they call it a magic ring! I haven't seen one before, so I can't be certain."

Zhong Shenxiu was astonished that this world possessed anything akin to a 'storage ring.' What was he most lacking right now? A space to store items!

"Where can I buy one of these?" Zhong Shenxiu urgently asked Robin again.

"Not in this small town. I hear you can find them in the magic shops in larger cities," Robin replied.

Zhong Shenxiu fell silent, immediately preoccupied with the thought of acquiring one for himself.

"Um, three for me as well." Anbela was the second to succumb to temptation, handing Robin three gold coins.

With a leader having broken the ice, the others felt far less restraint. They flocked forward to make purchases. In the blink of an eye, every single sweet potato Robin had roasted was sold out. Such a scene was usually reserved for major clearance sales or promotional events, and to see it here was truly a case of the world being full of wonders.

Zhong Shenxiu had never expected such a common baked sweet potato to become a hot commodity. Earning money this easily? If he had known this, why bother selling herbs? He should have opened an open-air restaurant—it would have been far more profitable.

Seeing that many people still looked unsatisfied, Zhong Shenxiu quickly instructed Robin to bring out all the remaining stock. This was a grand opportunity for profit, and he certainly wouldn't miss it!

"I want to reserve ten!" Lisha suddenly rushed up to Zhong Shenxiu, holding ten gold coins forward.

Seeing Zhong Shenxiu’s strange expression, Lisha flushed slightly—a rare sight for her—and quickly explained, "I'm saving them for next time."

Witnessing Lisha resort to the tactic of pre-ordering, the others could no longer stay silent. They quickly followed suit, terrified of being left with nothing but crumbs.

The competition escalated to the point where Robin no longer bothered roasting them; he simply tossed the raw potatoes to them and told them to roast their own.

"What's the total income?" Zhong Shenxiu asked Robin after their latest batch had sold out again.

"Master, we made one hundred and seventy-three gold coins in total," Robin replied happily. Honestly, Robin had never seen so much money before, and to earn it through her own efforts—it was exhilarating!

One hundred and seventy-three gold coins! If calculated by the rate of "1 gold coin = 1000 silver coins," that was 173,000 silver coins. Zhong Shenxiu was equally delighted. He hadn't expected his little act of fleecing to land on such wealthy individuals. Earning this much in a single evening—think of how many things this money could buy!

Finally done eating, the mercenary squad settled down to rest. They understood that as long as they didn't actively provoke Zhong Shenxiu and his companion, they would be safe.

Now, some were wiping down their weapons, others were writing in their travel logs, and some were studying maps.

"Hey, can I take a look at the map you have there?" A youthful voice sounded next to Lisha’s ear, startling her quite badly.

Lisha looked up to see Zhong Shenxiu, feeling a touch of surprise that this child was initiating conversation with her.

"You want to see the map?" Lisha asked suddenly, a mysterious smile playing on her lips.

Zhong Shenxiu didn't answer, merely nodding slightly.

"Fixed price: one gold coin per glance," Lisha echoed Zhong Shenxiu's exact phrasing.

Damn it, Zhong Shenxiu thought, they say the heart of a woman is the most venomous, and it seems they are not wrong!